Deathwatch (25 page)

“
Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”
 

“
The Tractor Trio likes to drive large farm equipment through the front windows of banks.
How did it get here?”
 

Murph backed out and looked around.
“I’ve been out a lot, going around, taking care of business.
Kate works a regular shift.
It wouldn’t have been hard to find time when neither of us was around.
It keeps snowing.
Tracks would have been covered in ten or twenty minutes.
I never saw any.”

One of the FBI boys ran around the side of the house to investigate the shooting.

Bing waved him back.
“Stay right there.
This here might be an unrelated crime scene.
I don’t want any extra footprints.”

Murph scanned the landscaping.
The thresher couldn’t have come up his driveway, his woodpile was in the way, but it could have rolled back here through any of his neighbors’ treeless yards.

In a split second, everything fell into place.
“Wendy White.
Moved next door recently.
Has a boyfriend and a grown son.
According to Kate, neither live with her.
So that they’re not seen together?
I’ve been over to her house and happened to see a serious gun cabinet and a safe.
Her son drives a black BMW-M5.”

“
Getaway car,” Bing said.
“V-10 engine, 500 horsepower.”
 

“
Tops out at 155 miles per hour.”
 

Bing nodded again and looked toward the neighbor’s house with interest.
“Still not exactly a smoking gun.”

“
She eats at the Main Street Diner three times a day.”
 

“
Sitting at a table where she can have the bank across the road in sight?”
 

“
I’d be willing to bet my combat pay.
And I bet the third partner drives a dark-blue sedan.
I’ve seen it on the street, just hanging out.
Kate saw it at the diner.
We thought it belonged to
the killer who was hunting her
.”
He looked toward the road.
“Do you know what this street is?”
 

Bing followed his gaze, eyes narrowed.
Then he gave a quick grin.
“The shortcut between the bank and Route 1.
For a quick getaway.
They were scouting it out, looking for traffic patterns.”
He reached for his radio unit.
“Let’s see if we have enough for a search warrant.
I’m calling this in.”

* * *

Kate and Murph were in protective custody and removed from the property by the time the FBI stormed
Wendy White
’s house, with local police assistance.
Captain Bing had called, however, to let Murph know that they had Wendy in custody and were searching for her partners, which made Murph happy.
He had cop in the blood, Kate thought, pretty happy herself.

They were going to receive some serious reward money for leading the authorities to the bank robbers.
Apparently some marked bills from one of the hits were found with Wendy.

Murph drove down the Interstate, traffic sparse, the sun rising on the horizon.

“
Do you think Asael will try to find us?”
She leaned her head against the headrest.
 

“
He might not.
Beyond anything else, he’s smart.
He’s on the top of his game, uncaptured, which means he’s smarter than the rest.
He just saw his lover fail.
He might realize that this is one situation he’s better off staying away from.
He has to know he’ll be expected.”
 

“
Or he could want revenge badly enough not to give a flying fudge.”
She narrowed her eyes.
“Are you trying to make me not worry?”
 

“You deserve to relax for a night.
When we get where we're going, I'll be giving you long speeches on a regular basis about always
being
prepared and all that.
You can call me Drill Sergeant Dolan.”
 

“I'm sure I'll be able to think of a number of names to call you.”
She smiled sweetly.

“So you do think he'll come after us?”
she asked after a minute, unable to let the subject drop.

“
Probably, yes
.
And, in any case, we'll act as if we knew for sure that he was coming.”
He shook his head.
“
Doesn’t mean he’ll find us.”
 

“
But
if he does, we’ll stand up to him together.”
 

“
Personal bodyguard on duty.”
He grinned.
“And you’ll be receiving extensive firearms training, martial arts all the way to the black belt level, and some other things.
I have a list.”
 

He might have been a tad overestimating what she was capable of.
“Is all that necessary?”

“
Maybe not.”
He winked at her, in a lighter mood than she’d ever seen him.
“Maybe it’s just my fantasy to hook up with a hot special ops chick.”
 

“
Don’t let me hold you back.
Maybe you can meet one at the local VFW,” she suggested as they passed a WELCOME TO OHIO sign.
 

“
Do you need to stop at the next rest stop?”
Murph asked.
 

“
I’m good.
How much farther?”
 

“
We’re about halfway there.”
 

The Marshals Service had a house ready for them in Eastern Ohio.
Murph had declined an escort.
Their new papers, new identities would be waiting for them at the house when they arrived.

She turned so she could fully look at him.
“Are you sure about this?
Broslin is your home town.
You have your house to finish.
You could have gone back to the police department when your shoulder was better.”

“
I’ll be fine.
I’m right where I want to be.”
 

He sounded gratifyingly sure, but she couldn't keep herself from pushing.
“
In Ohio?”
 

“
With the woman I’m falling for.”
He looked at her with heat in his gaze.
“Is that too fast?”
 

Her heart tripped.
She felt his hot gaze on her skin as if he'd touched her.
“I have no idea.
I’ve never been in love before.
I never trusted anyone enough.
I don’t know if I can.”

“
Same here.
But I’m willing to give it a try.”
 

So was she.
“
We could be terrible at this.”
 

“
Or we could learn to trust and figure things out as we go.
I’d like to do that.”
 

Her heart swelled.
“
Me, too.”
If anyone was worth the risk, it was Murph.
 

A few seconds of silence stretched between them, a million things crowding into her
mind
all at once.
She had serious doubts.
Stupid.
She knew the kind of man Murph was.
She knew him with her heart.
This was a good card.
And she was scared to pick up her ace because of all the bad cards she'd had in the past.
Maybe some part of her still didn't believe she deserved better.
 

Well, she did, dammit.

For a second she thought of her mother and that
long ago
lesson about cards.
She thought of
her family.
Even if they couldn't be together right now, gratitude filled her heart.
She was grateful for them, and for Murph.

“
We'll be fine,” she told him, her voice as sure now as his had been.
 

He flashed a sexy smile at her, full of desire and promise, that left her dazed for a second.

“
I hate him.
Mordocai,” she said after a while.
“He had to know I’d miss my dad.
He pretended to be a father figure so I’d let my guard down around him.”
 

“
He was smart.
But not smart enough.
He’s dead and we’re alive.”
 

They came to a toll booth, a couple of cars in front of them.
Looked like the guy at the gate had trouble finding enough change.

Murph unsnapped her seat belt and pulled her over, snuggled her to him.
“I could have lost you.”

“
You didn’t.”
 

He kissed her.

He had amazing lips and he knew how to use them.
His warmth and strength enveloped her.
His hand roamed her back then slipped forward to cup her breast as he deepened the kiss.

Desire shot through her, zipping all the way to her core.

The small sound of capitulation that escaped the back of her throat was answered by a feral growl.
Pleasure tingled through her.

They didn’t realize the line of cars had started moving until someone beeped their horn.

She scooted back to her side, snapped her seat belt on, her entire body flushed with heat.

Murph cleared his throat as he pulled forward and paid the toll, then stepped on the gas.
“Maybe we should stop at that next rest stop.
We’ve been on the road a while.
We could take a break.”

“
We could get a hotel room and catch a quick nap,” she suggested, oh, so innocently.
 

His lips stretched into a grin.
“We don’t have to be
that
quick.
At one point I’d like to take my time with you, Miss Milano.”
 

Her new identity.
They were going into witness protection as an engaged couple.
His new last name was Andrews, which apparently meant 'warrior' in Greek, so he was pretty pleased with it.

Tingles of anticipation raced across her skin as she watched the smile that played above his masculine lips.
She missed her family, but being with Murph felt right, too.
As if she belonged with him.
She wished she could take him home to meet her parents and Emma.
They would like Murph.

“
Do you think we’ll ever be able to return to our real lives?”
she asked.
 

“
Yes.”
 

“
How do you know?”
 

“
Robin said.”
 

“
The mail woman?”
She narrowed her eyes.
“Is she like psychic?
Sometimes she says strange stuff.”
 

He nodded.

“
She told you about the thresher, right?
She predicted it?”
 

“Not exactly.
Turns out she saw the thresher go into the barn when she was out walking her poodle.”